THE GREAT RESIGNATION
THE GREAT
RESIGNATION
EMPLOYEES ARE QUITTING AT RECORD RATES
BY JOHN DIJULIUS
The Great Resignation is a mass , voluntary exodus from the workforce . It is here , and it is quite real . Turnover is nothing new , and neither are corporate retention strategies . But the Great Resignation and extreme turnover that is happening today across industries is a different phenomenon that requires a different approach . The Great Resignation caught so many business leaders flatfooted .
Just in the second quarter of 2021 ( April , May & June ), a total of 11.5 million workers quit their jobs , according to the U . S . Department of Labor . If that isn ’ t bad enough , a survey of over 30,000 workers conducted by Microsoft found that 41 % are considering quitting ; that number jumps to 54 % for Gen Z .
These stats scare the hell out of leaders from every organization . The cost of any turnover is expensive . Not only the hard cost in the time spent recruiting , screening , and retraining new employees , but in employee morale , lack of consistency in customer service , compromised hiring , existing employees questioning their decision to stay , and high performers ' frustration working with average and below-average co-workers .
10